“If it bleeds, it leads,” some cynical old newspaper editors used to say. Looking at the Chronicle’s most-read stories of the past year, that seems to be true: alleged crimes, serious injuries and illnesses accounted for more than half of the 10 stories readers clicked on the most. What the top-10 list doesn’t reflect, however, is the many follow-up stories about the horse community coming together to support those in need.
The list also covers broader topics that drew readers’ attention: our annual live blog from the ASPCA Maclay Final and an uplifting tale about a woman who has cared for the same horse for 26 years—more than half of both their lives, for example. Which stories caught your eye in 2022?
10. Michael Barisone Found Not Guilty By Reason Of Insanity
Michael Barisone (left) reacts to the reading of the verdict with his attorney Edward Bilinkas. Lawandcrime.com Photo
In a highly publicized trial, former Grand Prix dressage rider Michael Barisone was found not guilty of attempted murder by reason of insanity for the August 2019 shooting of Lauren Kanarek and not guilty of attempted murder of her boyfriend Robert Goodwin.
A 12-member jury in Morris County, New Jersey, heard two weeks of testimony in a trial that was livestreamed on the Law & Crime Network. After the trial Barisone was transferred first to the Ann Klein Forensic Center (New Jersey) for a psychiatric evaluation, and then to Greystone Park Psychiatric Hospital (New Jersey), where he remains today.
Desert International Horse Park was the site of the first reported cases in what became an EHV-1 outbreak that gripped California for more than six weeks in early 2022. File Photo
A case of equine herpesvirus (EHV-1) identified Feb. 11 at the Desert International Horse Park in Thermal, California, was the beginning of an outbreak of EHV-1 and equine myeloencephalopathy that spread to multiple counties over the next six weeks, ultimately sickening and killing dozens of horses and temporarily halting all showing and equine activities in the state. In response to the outbreak, the U.S. Equestrian Federation instituted new biosecurity procedures that will remain in place for the 2023 show season.
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What do you do when you see a bridle-less horse coming straight at you? Keep shooting, of course. Conor Swail handled losing all steering on Vital Chance De La Roque calmly Dec. 10 during the Credit Suisse Challenge at CHI Geneva (Switzerland). Mackenzie Clark Photo
After landing off the last fence in the Credit Suisse Challenge during the CHI Geneva (Switzerland), Vital Chance De La Roque gave one of his trademark finish-line bucks. Only in this case, he unseated rider Conor Swail, who inadvertently pushed “Vinny’s” hackamore off over the horse’s ears as he tried to right himself. What followed was an impromptu, at-liberty victory lap that tested the rider’s balance and composure.
Augusta Iwasaki won the 2022 ASPCA Maclay Final. Kimberly Loushin Photo
Every year, the Chronicle live blogs from the daylong marathon of equitation that is the ASPCA Maclay Final at the National Horse Show. Readers followed along as reporters Kimberly Loushin and Alex Beckstett spent the day ringside at the Kentucky Horse Park’s Alltech Arena to provide class updates and share photos and impressions on each ride, from the roughly 220 hopefuls who competed in the first round to the final five who made the work-off.
David Beisel. Winslow Photography LLC Photo.
Grand prix jumper David Beisel, of Goshen, Ohio, suffered a severe spinal cord injury March 12 in a fall while showing at the World Equestrian Center—Ohio. Beisel walked for the first time in late March and got back on a horse in July. Along the way, his family was supported by a spectacularly popular fundraising class put on at WEC.
Brie Frigm and “Gabe.” Photo Courtesy Of Brie Frigm
When Gabbriel “Brie” Frigm was 14, she made a lifetime commitment to camp horse “Gabe.” Now 40, she’s gone from a pony-mad teenager to a professional and mom, but she’s kept her word to Gabe for 26 years.
Frigm still drives out to the barn most days to visit him in his field and change his blankets in the winter.
“At this point I’ve had him for more than half my life. He’s such a special part of it now,” she says. “I’ve forgotten how he used to be a naughty stinker. Now he’s a sweet old man waiting at the gate.”
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Eddie was a sweet, talented and usually polite young horse, until he began to demonstrate bizarre and dangerous behavior, sending blogger Lauren Sprieser down a difficult road. KTB Creative Group Photo
Grand Prix dressage rider Lauren Sprieser took readers inside the painful medical mystery she had to unravel around a promising young horse who showed increasingly dangerous behavior, up to ultimately making the difficult decision to euthanize him. In this blog, she also shared the devastating responses her situation garnered from some anonymous corners of the internet, leading her to caution readers:
“I tell this story so that others who are experiencing similar troubles don’t feel alone. Horses are so, so fragile, but so are humans. I hope you hug yours, I hope you err on the side of kind, and I hope you make the most of every opportunity, even when the best that can be done is the least bad thing.”
Cassandra Kahle won the $100,000 Forrester Tractor Grand Prix de Penn National with Pyrenes De Louzes in October 2021, several months before her fall. Mollie Bailey Photo
Professional hunter/jumper rider Cassandra Kahle suffered a traumatic brain injury in a serious fall Jan. 29 while competing at HITS Ocala (Florida). The fall left her in a coma for 10 days and using a wheelchair for months afterward. With the help of intensive rehab and therapy, she rode again for the first time six months later and has been making steady progress ever since.
The Virginia Tech Helmet Lab posted the results of its research in a new equestrian section of its helmet ratings website. Courtesy Of Virginia Tech Helmet Lab
When the Virginia Tech Helmet Lab released its equestrian helmet ratings, a research project three years in the making and funded by USEF, USEA, USHJA and Jacqueline Mars, readers flocked to see the first batch of results. The lab has tested 40 helmets so far, with more on the way. After the ratings’ release, lead scientist Dr. Barry Miller took the time to answer Chronicle readers’ most pressing questions on the ratings, the science behind them, and what they mean for riders and consumers.
Michael Traurig. Courtesy Of San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office
Hunter/jumper trainer Michael Traurig, the 52-year-old son of former U.S. Equestrian Team rider Bernie Traurig, was arrested in January on suspicion of sexually abusing a 13-year-old girl in 2019. Traurig, who was temporarily suspended by the U.S. Center for SafeSport on “allegations of misconduct” in October 2021, was ruled ineligible after his arrest. Initially held on $1 million bail, that amount was reduced to $50,000, and he was released from custody in March. His case currently is making its way through the San Mateo Superior Court (California) and is next scheduled for a trial readiness conference in April 2023.
Check out the rest of our Best Of 2022 coverage, and make sure you follow @chronofhorse on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to stay up to date with everything happening in the horse world in the new year.
